Brown University's endowment returned 19.6% in fiscal 2026 (year to June 30, 2026), its best result in five years, and grew to $9.5 billion from $8 billion. Its 10-year annualised return is 13.6%, and it paid a record $357 million into the operating budget, about 24% of Brown's fiscal 2026 revenue.
Answer
Brown University's endowment returned 19.6% in fiscal 2026 (the year to June 30, 2026), its best result in five years, and grew to $9.5 billion from $8 billion. The 10-year annualised return is 13.6%. The endowment paid a record $357 million into the operating budget, about 24% of Brown's fiscal 2026 revenue.
| Brown endowment — fact box | Fiscal 2026 (year to June 30, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Endowment value | $9.5 billion |
| Prior year | $8 billion (FY2025) |
| Return | 19.6% (FY2025: 11.9%) |
| 3 / 5 / 10 / 20-year annualised return | 14.2% / 7.8% / 13.6% / 9.7% |
| Peer ranking | First quartile, Cambridge Associates universe of 130+ funds over $1 billion |
| Payout to operating budget | $357 million (record), 24% of revenue |
| Payout policy | 4.5% to 5.5% of average market value |
| CIO | Jane Dietze (leaving end of 2026); successor Joshua Kennedy |
Sources: Brown University news release (Oct. 9, 2026); Chief Investment Officer, Matt Toledo (Oct. 12, 2026); AI-CIO, "Comparing Ivy League Endowment Returns" (Nov. 11, 2025).
How big is Brown's endowment in 2026?
Brown's endowment had a total market value of $9.5 billion at June 30, 2026, up from $8 billion a year earlier, the university announced on October 9, 2026. Brown lists these elements of the year:
- $1.6 billion of investment gains;
- $135 million of new endowed gifts;
- $200 million from Brown University Health;
- a record $357 million contributed to the operating budget (an outflow).
The endowment is made up of about 4,000 individual endowed funds and managed assets. At $9.5 billion it is one of the smaller Ivy League endowments; for the full table see our largest university endowments 2026 ranking.
What return did Brown earn in fiscal 2026?
The endowment returned 19.6%, its highest in five years and well above the 11.9% it earned in fiscal 2025 (AI-CIO). Brown says Cambridge Associates places the result in the first quartile of more than 130 endowments and foundations with assets over $1 billion.
Chief Investment Officer magazine described fiscal 2026 as a year "marked by strong VC returns". It reported that many peer institutions benefited from exposure to SpaceX and, through venture capital managers, to artificial intelligence, and that this exposure "has driven a divergence in returns" between peers. The magazine did not state Brown's own SpaceX or AI exposure.
| Institution | FY2026 return | Value at June 30, 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNC Management Co. | 37.8% | n/a | AI-CIO, Oct. 12, 2026 |
| Harvard | roughly 27% | about $68 billion | Institutional Investor, Oct. 16, 2026 |
| Brown | 19.6% | $9.5 billion | Brown University, Oct. 9, 2026 |
| Dartmouth | 17.5% | $10 billion | AI-CIO, Oct. 22, 2026 |
| MIT | 10.3% | n/a | AI-CIO, Oct. 12, 2026 |
See our profiles of Harvard, Dartmouth, Princeton and MIT.
What is Brown's long-term track record?
Brown reports annualised returns of:
- 14.2% over three years;
- 7.8% over five years;
- 13.6% over ten years;
- 9.7% over twenty years.
Institutional Investor (Oct. 16, 2026) noted that Brown's 13.6% ten-year return was the highest in a group that included Stanford (12.5%), Penn (12.0%), MIT (11.7%) and Harvard (11.1%). Over the decade, Brown says the endowment generated $7.2 billion of investment returns and provided $2.5 billion to support education and research.
The gap between the five-year and ten-year figures is a reminder that the five-year window includes the weak years after 2021. One strong year lifts the short-term numbers quickly; the long-term record moves slowly.
How does the endowment fund Brown?
According to the university, in fiscal 2026 the endowment:
- contributed a record $357 million to the operating budget, nearly $32,000 per student;
- covered 24% of total fiscal 2026 revenue;
- directed its largest share, 35%, to scholarships, fellowships and academic prizes.
Brown sets the payout each year at between 4.5% and 5.5% of the endowment's average market value. That smoothing rule is common among large endowments and is explained in our endowment model explainer. Brown also says 48% of current undergraduates receive need-based aid, with an average package of $72,206.
How is Brown's endowment invested?
Citing Brown's fiscal 2025 report, Chief Investment Officer magazine lists the allocation as:
| Asset class | Share |
|---|---|
| Private equity | 44% |
| Absolute return | 22% |
| Public equity | 10% |
| Real assets | 10% |
| Credit | 8% |
| Cash and receivables | 4% |
A 44% private equity weight places Brown firmly in the endowment-model camp, with a heavy tilt to illiquid growth assets. That is the type of portfolio that benefited most from venture gains in fiscal 2026.
Who runs Brown's endowment, and what is changing?
Jane Dietze has led the Brown Investment Office as Vice President and Chief Investment Officer since joining in 2013. Brown announced on October 9, 2026 that she will leave at the end of 2026 to become the first CIO of the Fund for Science and Technology.
- Joshua Kennedy, Brown class of 1997, who joined the office in 2016 and has been deputy CIO since 2022, will become CIO.
- Peter Levine, class of 1995, who joined in 2018 and has been a managing director since 2019, will become deputy CIO.
An internal succession of this kind usually signals continuity in manager relationships and asset mix.
What else matters for Brown's endowment?
Taxes. Brown says it enters the 4% bracket of the federal excise tax on university investment income in fiscal 2027, after Congress expanded the tax in July 2025. Dartmouth faces the same increase, from 1.4% to 4% (AI-CIO).
Lessons for asset owners. Three points stand out:
- Dispersion was wide. Fiscal 2026 returns ranged from 10.3% at MIT to 37.8% at UNC Management Co. among reported peers. Venture and SpaceX exposure explains much of the gap.
- Long-term leadership. Brown's ten-year return is ahead of much larger peers, showing that size is not a precondition for strong long-run results.
- Payout discipline. A 4.5% to 5.5% rule means a strong year raises spending gradually rather than all at once.
Sources
- Brown University, "With 19.6% investment return, Brown endowment continues record support for academic priorities," October 9, 2026.
- Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com), Matt Toledo, "Brown University Posts 19.6% Fiscal Year Return," October 12, 2026.
- Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com), Matt Toledo, "Dartmouth Endowment Returns 17.5% in Fiscal 2026," October 22, 2026.
- Institutional Investor, James Comtois, "Harvard, Brown See Record Growth Thanks to VC and Public Equities," October 16, 2026.
- Chief Investment Officer (ai-cio.com), Jonathan Yardley, "Comparing Ivy League Endowment Returns," November 11, 2025.
Last updated October 28, 2026.